Why Does She Love Me?
by Petals Open to the Moon
Summary: "When he faltered above her, his nerves drawn hot and tight at the edges, and told her he loved her in broken chords of music. When she took his face in her flowery hands, and he realized her palms were slick with venom..." Why does she love me? A tender one-shot, Caius/ Athenodora pairing.


**Caius/Athenodora lovers, enjoy. :) This is probably my last posting before I leave. (For more info, see my profile page) **

**Reviews highly appreciated, as always. **

* * *

_"We stood still; for the first time did we know fear, and then pain. _

_And we stood still that we might not spill this pain more precious than pleasure…" _

_(Ayn Rand; "Anthem")_

If he could bring down the sun for her, he would.

If she approached him with lilting steps, tugged hopefully at his sleeve, and whispered, "But I need it," he would climb the heavens so fast, the stars would scorch in his wake. It is impossible, of course, but symbolic of his love for her.

His fingers burn, each time he touches her. And just like the sun, he is blinded by her smile.

She is the only person who can make him laugh. _Real _laughter; not the harsh fabrication directed at those he hates or disagrees with. She presses light into his words, with all the tenderness of a mother kissing the scraped knee of her son.

She is the only one who has ever made him weep.

He has wept only once in his immortal life. Not in sorrow, but on the happiest, most profound night of his life. When he faltered above her, his nerves drawn hot and tight at the edges, and told her he loved her in broken chords of music. When she took his face in her flowery hands, and he realized her palms were slick with venom.

_Why does she love me? _

She didn't let him ask. He sobbed like a baby, his tears staining their lips. The pain ran like a raw circuit through his body, glowing underneath the many bites and scars. They curled together in the darkness, naked and vulnerable only to each other.

"Anything…" he gasped, and it sounded like a moan. "Anything you want, and it's yours."

She nestled her head against his, a wise smile on her lips. She had everything she needed.

_Why does she love me?_

* * *

He watches her dance in the courtyard fountain, high above through the lattice of his private study. Specks of light and rainbow fall from each perfect part of her, translucent and glistening.

It only takes him a moment to find her. Her cream-colored dress has lost all substance, seemingly; sticking in immodest counters to her skin.

His eyes darken, and she looks up, as if drawn to the _sound _of color, rather than by sight.

"Join me," she laughs.

He takes a step, then looks up at the castle anxiously. She loves his shyness. Everyone knows him by his temper, which blusters ahead of his true character.

She knows better.

"Now, Caius. Or I shall inside."

He sheds his jacket, shoes, and tie with comical rapidity, blurring into the sparkling water with her. Her eyes match his in onyx, and he knows she likes how he looks.

"Delicious," she pronounces him. "May I keep you with me?"

"Of course," he says gruffly. It has been a long day, and she'll need to work a little harder to smash away his crusty exterior this time.

Fortunately, Athenodora knows just how to do this.

"'Georgie Porgie, pudding and pie,'" she croons. "'Kissed the girls and—'"

He snarls. "You _know _how I hate nursery rhymes." His fingers threaten to tear her bodice.

"'And made them cry.'" she finishes sweetly.

"Athenodora…"

"Oo, my full name! Are you angry with me?"

Her bodice gives way a little. 'No. I am angry with the stupid committee."

She sighs. "Haven't you resolved it with them yet?"

"You know Aro. Stubborn as a bull-headed pig."

More crusty layers form, and she frowns. Time to stop the teasing.

"Darling…" she croons, filling her mouth with honey. "You've been working too hard. Let me care for you?"

He avoids her eyes grumpily. She sighs again, leaning in to flick her tongue gently over the little hollow in his throat. He groans, and she grins victoriously. This loving action always has the ability to lift his spirits... and other things.

She giggles. From the way he is pressing into her, it is not hard to guess where his intentions lie. She nuzzles his throat until he groans again, and then places a sweet kiss on his beautiful, Grecian nose.

"Inside," she says seductively.

He follows, like a well-trained puppy to its owner. He has no choice, really.

* * *

They lie together under the stars, watching the red line against the horizon disappear slowly into indigo, and then black.

They are both satiated, but an anxious tide still churns in his chest, forgotten for a moment in their blissful passion.

"Darling…" he whispers.

She hums, not opening her eyes. He shakes her shoulder gently, needing their soft, sweet glow to encourage him. She looks up, confused but attentive.

"Yes?"

He bends to kiss her cheek, his snowy hair melting into her blonde locks for a moment. They have always looked like a Norwegian or Swedish couple, except for the unfamiliar crimson of their eyes. Aro has teased them numerous times… as if he, too, did not have a wife as pale as Winter's morning. Didyme was delicate, as well, but for Caius, his wife alone stands out in perfection. She was heartbreakingly beautiful in real life. She has not stopped aching in his heart ever since.

He ends the kiss, smoothing her once freckled cheek. "Don't be mad at me."

"Never, my love."

Her answer helps him, but he still rushes. "Why do you love me?"

A cricket chirps faintly near her head, she sits up, flicking it away. Her smile makes her eyes dance like fireflies. "What a silly question!"

"I'm serious, Thena."

She sees that he is. Her voice softens. "Why would I be with you for so long, if I did not love you?"

"Don't say that!" He looks almost afraid. "Don't make me think you've _wanted _to leave, but I haven't let you."

"I have never wanted to leave."

Desperately, "Would you tell me if you did?"

She regards him quietly for an entire minute, her poise thoughtful. Just when he feels that he is going to crack under the strain, she speaks.

"Do you love me, Caius?"

He gapes. "What?"

"Do you love _me, _Caius?"

His fingers clutch at the grass, struggling for words. "What—how can you ask that?"

She laughs softly, with love and not mockery. He is temporarily stunned by the sound, and by his own insecurity.

"Silly, silly Caius," she whispers. "You've answered your own question."

His eyes fill with venom, still struggling to understand why she would _ever _ask him if _he _loved her. Oh, Gods above, but she _knew _he did! He was _nothing _without her, damn it! _Nothing-! _

Her lips flutter down his cheek, hushing him, and he realized he had been speaking aloud.

"It is difficult," she says softly. "For me to say it, just as it is for you."

"Yes," he breathes.

"But I will try, nonetheless, because I _do _love you, and I always, _always _want you to be happy and satisfied? All right?"

He nods, not moving against her.

"I love the sun," she says suddenly. "So much, in fact, my wonderful husband, my mate, told me that he would bring it down for me. Put sunbeams all around me, so I could watch them dance in their own light."

"Athena—"

"We are told not to love it," she continues, not breaking. Her eyes are sad. "We are told that we are damned creatures, and that our undead bodies are as ugly as our hearts. We do not burn in the sun, but they are forever trying to take it away from us. Some of us hate it, some of us don't. And I… I love it."

Her eyes began to glow, as if lighting up from inside. "I love it, even though it could burn me. Its light can be cruel, but I only feel safe and warm under its rays. Without this light, I would be reduced to ashes. I would wish those ashes thrown into the sea, and spread out along the ocean floor. I would wish to be nothing more than a memory, because without my Sun, my eternal Mate, I am nothing and never would be."

He stares up at her beautiful face, his hands shaking. He tries to speak, but can only pull her towards him, desperate and passionate and tender all at once. She melts willingly into his body. He hears her say she loves him. He can hear himself say that _he _loves _her. _Only he is not so eloquent as his precious, ethereal Queen. He never will be.

"I love you." He speaks it brokenly, and he shouts it in wild joy inside his mind. She is the other half to his Eternity. She is the perfect answer to all the bitter, painful questions of his life.

_Why does she love me? _

Because she _does. _End of story.


End file.
